South of Sydney in the stunning Jamberoo Valley is the Budderoo National Park. Minnamurra Rainforest is part of this wonderful tropical rainforest and home to a great variety of exciting birds and rare plants. You should be able to hear, and usually see Lyrebirds showing off for females near their mounds at this time of year. Elevated boardwalks showcase this magnificent rainforest with its huge trees and crystal clear streams.

Katandra Reserve & Long Reef

Katandra Reserve was once privately held land now owned by the Lands Department and managed by Friends of Katandra. The reserve is situated on the escarpment of Ingleside is a delight for birdwatchers and plants enthusiasts. In spring you can see kingfishers, cuckoos, nesting raptors, honeyeaters and maybe even a Dollarabird or two.
Long Reef just around the corner is renown for an array of waders from Ruddy Turnstones to Eastern Curlews the gamut of possibilities is very exciting. So wear your slip proof foot wear to walk over the rock platforms to view the selection at low tide.

Ku-ring-gai National Park

Here you will find fast moving honeyeaters like the White-cheeked and the Eastern Spinebill. There are often Varied Sitellas during October and all sorts of surprises down the Chitlern Trail. There are Little Penguins on the Lion Island and Whistling Kites at Patonga.

Eyre Peninsula

Spectacular Coffin Bay estuary with its grand expanse of rambling channels and waterways and amazingly beautiful bay is one prime destination to go bird watching in the region. Here you can watch for Rock Parrots, Ospreys, Hooded Plovers and other heathland and sea coast birds. The most ideal time to visit this area is during the winter when many birds are moving in to the mainland from the islands.

Port Lincoln National Park though remotely located has a mouth-watering reputation in the birding world. Mallee Whipbird, Blue-breasted Fairy-wren, Western Yellow Robin and Purple-gaped Honeyeater means that the habitat is wild, humanless thick mallee with a coastline of quiet coves, sheltered beaches and sheer cliffs.

Arid Lands Botanic Garden, near Port Augusta is a birdwatcher’s delight. From walking trails through the garden you will get to see the Rufous Fieldwren, Chirruping Wedgebill, White-winged Fairy-wren and White-fronted Honeyeater.

At Ceduna you can try for the Scarlet-breasted Parrot and Yellow-plumed Honeyeaters, along the way you can also visit other vast South Australian National Parks. While Coming down this alluring coast; the most eastern of Australia’s Bight you will get to see places like Streaky, Venus and Baird Bays with huge white dunes, wetlands and long surf beaches.

Capertee Valley

Capertee Valley is a good location to find the extremely rare Regent Honeyeaters, Turquoise Parrots and Plum-headed Finches. You will also get to see Gang-gangs, Yellow Thornbills and a pardalote that nests in the old wooden building across the road.
Other birds residing in this area include the Brown Treecreeper, White-browed and Grey-crowned Babbler, the Hooded Robin, Diamond Firetail, Choughs and the Yellow-tufted Honeyeater. With a bit of luck you might even see the Regent Honeyeater, Speckled Warbler and some of the owls. The rich diversity of bird life makes this valley an ideal birding spot in New South Wales.

The soaring sandstone cliffs, eucalypt forests and the woodlands provide a haven for birds. The valley itself is unique and contains some unusual rock formations, one being the truly amazing Pantoneys Crown, a huge mesa at the entrance to the Capertee Valley. Then there are the pagoda rock formations for which the Gardens of Stone National Park is famous.

Warrumbungles

Warrumbungle National Park and the Coonabrabran surrounds have an abundance of wildlife. Here you might get to see the Pale-headed Rosella and maybe even a Mallee Ringneck without having to drive all the way to Timbuktu, and yeah then there are Red-winged Parrots, and Variegated Fairy Wrens too.

The landscape formed by old volcanoes with speccy rock formations in crystaline skies will shatter your big city blues. There are also Dykes and Lava Domes, Plugs and Pyroclastic deposits.

Mallacoota & Gypsy Point

Protecting almost 100 km of pristine coastline, Croajingolong National Park at 86,000 ha contains a rich diversity of habitats – vast tracts of open eucalypt forest, large areas of coastal heath, patches of banksia woodland and pockets of warm temperate rainforest. It is certainly one of the best places to go bird watching in Victoria.

250 species have been identified here – the heathland is home to rare birds like Eastern Bristlebird, Ground Parrot, Southern Emu Wren, Tawny-crowned Honeyeater, Striated Field Wren, Chestnut-rumped Heathwren and Beautiful Firetail.

The massive trees impress and renew the word forest. Thickets of coastal tea-tree are also ancient with swamp paperbark in patches and green damp pasture edging the Genoa River at Gypsy Point.

Other birds living in this birding heaven are Glossy Black-Cockatoos, Black Bittern, Turquoise Parrots, Hooded Plover and Double-banded Plover, Black-faced Cormorant, Spotted Quail-thrush and Robins galore : Easter Yellow, Flame, Scarlet, Rose and Pink.

Barrington Tops

The Antarctic Beech forest with soft tree ferns and ground covers of smaller ferns, mosses and lichens is home to Lyrebirds, Brush Turkeys, Eastern Whipbird, Bowerbird and Olive Whistler. If you have the luck you might even catch a glimpse of a rare Rufous Scrub Bird.

Gloucester Falls is a brief walk through Snow and Mountain Gums, one of the specialties of the Barrington area is the Olive Whistle bird.

Sphagnam moss swamp is an unusual environment that is sliced off by meandering channels of icy water filled with vivid green weeds. Rich in subalpine flora the region is also the home of the fabulous Flame Robin, Peregrine Falcon and Russet-tailed Thrush.

Christmas & Cocos Islands

Christmas & Cocos Islands are not only breathtakingly beautiful these are also steeped in history.

These Islands are remote specks of land some 300 kilometres south of Java and 1400 kilometres NW of Broome. They are a natural historians and birders paradise.

On Christmas Island you will see plenty of Red-footed Boobies, which are kept under constant scrutiny by piratical frigatebirds. Stunning golden White-tailed Tropicbirds glide over the forest canopy with the occasional giant, critically endangered Abbott’s Booby coming into view. Tropical rainforests are alive with Island Thrush, Imperial-Pigeons, Emerald Doves and white-eyes. For any person with an appreciation of island ecology this Island truly is a remarkable place to be.

The annual Red Crab migration is one of the great wildlife spectacles in the world. You have to see it to believe it. Christmas Island is home to over 20 species of land crab (the most bio diverse location in the world for these crustaceans) and includes the Giant Robber Crab, a species that has vanished from 90% of its original habitat. Also there are a bunch of special geckos and skinks and even a couple of bats that have their ranges restricted to this outpost.

Their close proximity to Java has made Christmas & Cocos Islands top locations for finding vagrant birds from Indonesia that have overshot the mark.

North Keeling Island is the star attraction in the region, which is an uninhabited National Park island. Here you can spot The Cocos Buff-banded Rail, the island’s endemic species and other vagrants such as the Saunders Tern and Western Reef Egret.

Schools in Sydney and New South Wales are renowned worldwide for having high a quality curriculum and innovative teaching. Computer technology, Internet, digital and multimedia materials are a part of everyday activities so students develop as creative and independent learners.

International students learn together with Australian students in safe, friendly, multicultural classrooms. Students are encouraged to participate and develop personal skills and confidence.

Teachers in New South Wales are highly qualified, university-trained professionals.

Subjects being offered are English, mathematics, science, history, geography, visual and performing arts, technology, languages and physical education. Specialist teachers teach English as a Second Language for international students.

There are pastoral care teams with dedicated curriculum coordinators as well as counsellors and careers advisers to look after the well-being of each student in all the schools

Universities

Australian universities have a high regard internationally and are ranked among the top universities in the world. Sydney and nearby regions offer a variety of options for international students.

Sydney and surrounding regions attract students from all corners of the globe. All universities offer a wide range of courses with degrees in the Sciences, Arts, Business Studies and Humanities. Further than this, each university has specialisations and strengths, which make it unique. These may comprise courses in Medicine, Nursing and related health areas, Engineering, Computer Studies, Law, Education, Sport and Exercise Science, Behaviour and Social Sciences, Tourism and Hospitality, Psychology, Dentistry, Management, Agriculture, Viticulture and Veterinary Science.

All universities places a very high level of importance on research, which ensures that the courses on offer are at the leading edge of knowledge, and are constantly being updated to reflect new developments. Many Australian researchers are trailblazers in their fields, and include in their number several Nobel Laureates, and Fellows of the Royal Society. Australian PhD degrees have an outstandingly high reputation internationally, and most universities will provide opportunities for international graduates to apply for PhD places.

All universities offer Bachelors, Masters and PhD degrees. There are also many universities that offer professional Doctorates and other Graduate Diplomas.

Learning English

There are many reasons why someone will want to study the English language. Some may be looking to improve their English for work or career purposes, others may have a personal interest or because they have it in mind to travel or because they must reach specified English entry standards.

Irrespective of the cause for learning English, colleges in Sydney and New South Wales offer programs to help students in achieving their goals.

There are privately owned and government owned English language colleges. These can be specialist colleges or a part of a high school, Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institute, private vocational provider or a university. Colleges can be small boutique institutions or large international providers.

Vocational education and training

Technical and further education graduates expand practical workplace skills and academic qualifications to progress directly into a career or to gain credit transfer to an Australian university.

Intensive English programs and university preparation courses increase competency for tertiary studies.

Certificate to advanced diploma level, and diploma-to-degree courses cover subjects such as:

• Business
• Information technology
• Marketing
• Engineering and building
• Child studies
• Telecommunications
• Hospitality and tourism management
• Applied sciences
• Design and visual arts
• Television and media
• Environmental studies and land management
• Sport and recreation

In Sydney and New South Wales, government Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes as well as non-government colleges provides vocational courses. Government to ensure the quality of curriculum, staff and teaching practices carefully monitors these institutions.

A remote yet accessible World Heritage-listed destination, Lord Howe Island, is the perfect place to get away from it all. This is a magical island in the Tasman Sea, which is only a two hours’ flight from Sydney or Brisbane.

Here is a place where you can revitalise, de-stress and calm your soul. Lord Howe Island is one of just four island groups in the world possessing World Heritage status, a tribute to its “amazing volcanic geology, its marvellous range of ecosystems, its rare collection of plants, birds and marine life… and last, though by no means least, its exceptional natural beauty.”

Encircled by the world’s southernmost coral reef, Lord Howe is Australia’s prime birdwatching spot. Watch red-tailed tropic-birds somersaulting backwards during their courting ritual. The island is home to 130 permanent and migratory bird species, while more than 500 species of fish and 90 species of coral thrive in its crystal-clear waters.

Spectacular views from Lord Howe’s Mt Gower will take your breath away and walks on the island will give you a delightful experience of nature. Lord Howe’s iconic Ball’s Pyramid is the largest monolithic sea rock in the world. The majestic twin peaks at southern end of the island, Mt Lidgbird and Mt Gower are 875 metres tall.

Blue Mountains National Park

This magnificent land of sandstone outcrops, deep ravines and hazy blue eucalypt forests boasts luxury retreats and the world’s steepest railway. The Blue Mountains National Park, reachable from Sydney by road or rail under two hours, is one of eight national parks that make up the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area.

The Blue Mountains National Park, a scenically dramatic region of forested ravines and pristine bushland about 120 km west of Sydney by road, is part of the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. It is listed for its extensive eucalypt forests and natural biodiversity.

The Wollemi Pine, world’s oldest species of tree found in Wollemi National Park, is unique to the Blue Mountains. The region is so densely forested the 40-metre-high trees escaped detection until 1994, flourishing undisturbed in a remote valley less than 200 km from Sydney.

Designated walking trails criss-cross Blue Mountains National Park, passing streams and waterfalls, descending into cool gorges and snaking around sheer cliffs offering spectacular views.

The region’s most famous rock formation is The Three Sisters, a trio of pinnacles best viewed from Katoomba, the largest of 26 mountain towns and villages. These include Wentworth Falls (near a beautiful waterfall of the same name), Faulconbridge and Katoomba. The settlement of Blackheath, full of colonial history, is renowned for its Rhododendron Festival held in November each year.

Enjoy a plethora of adventure activities, art and craft galleries, fine dining, stylish shopping and romantic escapes. Grand Edwardian country hotels predominated in the early 20th-century. An abundance of luxury guesthouses, spas and eco-retreats are available for you to choose from to spend the night. Gardens in these parts are a delight. One of the most striking is Everglades Gardens, laid out in the 1930s by Danish-born landscape designer Paul Sorensen. Don’t miss the tearooms!

Barrington Tops National Park

Barrington Tops National Park, situated about 320 km north of Sydney is a mixture of eucalypt forests, rainforest, subalpine woodlands, swamps and grasslands.

Rainforests occupies only about 0.3 % of Australia yet these shelter about half of all Australian plant families and about a third of the country’s mammal and bird species. Few rainforests are easier to reach than those within Barrington Tops National Park, an easy drive from Sydney.

The park, which includes eucalypt forests, subalpine woodlands and wetlands, also includes a 25-kilometre-long plateau set amongst long-extinct volcanoes. It’s reachable even to those with limited mobility; criss-crossed with an excellent network of tracks offering short, easy walks, steep overnight treks, and much in between.

Villages in the vicinity include charming Gloucester, which is nestled in a valley under a range of hills called The Bucketts, is home to both a school museum and a folk museum. Another town, Stroud, was founded in 1826 in the green Karuah Valley. It still looks the same as it did in the 1850s. Gold mining and cedar cutting history is preserved in small museums at Paterson, Dungog and Clarence Town.

In the Barrington Tops National Park you can spot the eastern grey kangaroo, red-necked and swamp wallabies, red-legged pademelon, platypus, northern brown bandicoot, yellow-bellied glider, sugar glider, mountain brushtail possum, koala, long-nosed potoroo, three-toed earless skink, stuttering frog, grey-headed flying-fox, short-beaked echidna and common wombat.

The birds you can spot ranges from the magnificent wedge-tailed eagle to smaller species like the White-throated needletail, Rufous scrub-bird and wompoo fruit-dove.

Dorrigo National Park

Dorrigo National Park in the rainforest-rich North Coast region of New South Wales is about 450 km north of Sydney (halfway between Sydney and Brisbane). Take the Pacific Highway south from Coffs Harbour, turn right at the Bellingen/Armidale turnoff, then come up the beautiful Waterfall Way.

Dorrigo’s rainforests, on the edge of the Great Escarpment, are amongst Australia’s most easily reached. Dorrigo National Park’s well-known boardwalks (on forest floor and at treetop level) make the going easy for visitors.

Dorrigo Rainforest Centre is a foremost CERRA interpretation centre. The plateau rises to 1586 metres and is at the centre of the now extinct Ebor Volcano, which helped create the region’s topography about 18 million years ago.

You can choose to take short strolls under the rainforest canopy, or to tackle longer and more challenging like the trek (just under 5 kilometres) to the top of Casuarina Falls. It starts from the Never Never picnic area along Sassafras Creek and passes through cool rainforest and eucalypt stands and Aboriginal historic sites. Views of McGrath’s Hump and the Great Escarpment are truly breathtaking.

Mount Warning National Park

The sun’s rays hit Mount Warning before anywhere else on the Australian continent. This 1156-metre-high mountain is the leftover central plug of the Tweed shield volcano.

The park is located about 800 km north of Sydney; near the place the Tweed River meets the sea at the border of New South Wales and Queensland.

The iconic attraction of the national park, Mt Warning, is a volcanic remainder once used by mariners as a landmark to warn them of offshore reefs. Captain James Cook gave the mountain its ominous-sounding name in 1770. The local Bundjalung Aboriginal people know the mountain as Wollumbin, meaning Cloud Catcher.

Sunrise is a predominantly magical time at Mt Warning. Under the established laws of the Bundjalung Aboriginal people, only certain people can climb Mt Warning, so if you choose to respect their wishes, consider a stroll along the 200-metre Lyrebird Track or a picnic at the Korrumbyn picnic area as an alternative to attempting the nine-kilometre return journey.

Mungo National Park

One of the world’s most significant human cremation sites, Mungo National Park, is also Australia’s first World Heritage-listed national park. The park is situated 987 km west of Sydney, and 110km northeast of Mildura

Mungo National Park is a part of the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area, a chain of dried-out lakes that were once strung between Willandra Creek and the main channel of the Lachlan River in Outback NSW.

Lake Mungo has dried out approximately 14,000 years ago, a huge crescent-shaped dune, called the Walls of China, stretches along the eastern shore of the lakebed. The wind and water are constantly eroding these dunes, of mud and sand. What remains today is a fragile landscape of crinkled, fluted outcrops and shifting sand, which changes colour from a daytime khaki to the vibrant yellows, oranges, and deep wine reds of sun set.

It was at Mungo, that a young scientist stumbled across “Mungo Woman”, the remains of a cremated skeleton of a human. Six years later, he found Mungo Man, buried in a pit strewn with ochre.

Stone flake tools are strewn across the landscape, and peeking out of the mud are prehistoric wombat holes, fossilised chunks of Eucalyptus trees, and the bones of long-dead marsupials, including extinct buffalo-sized wombats and giant kangaroos.

Kosciuszko National Park

This UNESCO Biosphere Reserve is one of the world’s best national parks and the biggest in New South Wales. Kosciuszko National Park, which is located about 400 km southwest of Sydney, is five hours by road or 50 minutes by air. Rising above the park is Australia’s highest mountain, Mt Kosciuszko.

The mountainous region between the Australian Capital Territory and the Victorian border is a wild and stunning region and Kosciuszko National Park, spreading almost 675,000 hectares, cocoons the best of it.

Here, in the highest elevations of Australia’s Great Dividing range in the Snowy Mountains, you can walk through alpine herbfields, explore caves and limestone gorges, enjoy scenic drives and stay at historic huts and homesteads – all within sight of the tallest mountains in Australia.

Famous mountain villages in the region are Charlotte Pass Village, the highest resort village in Australia; Thredbo Village, with its great restaurants, and Jindabyne.

Ground elevations Kosciuszko National Park ranges from just 213 metres above sea level up to 2228 metres. The alpine section of the park includes a wetland that is even mentioned in the Ramsar list (a group of wetlands around the world internationally recognised for their ecological, botanical, zoological, limnological or hydrological importance). Some of Australia’s most popular and most beautiful rivers, including the Snowy, Murray and Murrumbidgee, flow from this area. Apart from its winter role as a skiing and snowboarding paradise, the Biosphere Reserve supports wildlife such as the grey kangaroo, the red-necked wallaby, swamp wallaby and wombats.

Montague Island, Narooma

Montague Island, which is mostly Famous for its penguin and seal colonies, is also a superb location for whale watching during the season. The island is located 10km southeast of Narooma and about 350 km south of Sydney.

Montague Island becomes the temporary home of Hundreds of Australian fur seals (up to 700 animals during breeding season) from late August to early December. A separate species, New Zealand fur seals also visit the island regularly. The island is a breeding ground for at least 15 bird species – including about 8000 pairs of penguins.

Small penguins flourish on the island and other bird varieties include crested terns, silver gulls, Australian gannets, mutton birds, hawks, sea eagles and three species of shearwaters.

To safeguard Montague Island’s unique environment, access is limited to regular organised tours run by licensed operators from Narooma and guided by New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service rangers.

Guided tours include plants, animals, the island’s Aboriginal and European past and the Montague Lighthouse, first lit in November 1881. The lighthouse, 21 metres tall and able to be seen well out to sea, was converted to automatic operation in 1986. It is still an essential part of Australia’s coastal navigation system.

From September to November, guided tours expand to include whale watching, as humpback and southern right whales travel south on their annual migration from warmer tropical waters to the cooler waters of the Antarctic.

Solitary Islands Marine Park

Solitary Islands Marine Park is a tiny group of islands, which are spread in an area about 75 km along the Coffs Coast, from Muttonbird Island in the south to Plover Island in the north. These Islands give protection for marine species at the same time providing idyllic conditions for diving, fishing and whale watching. The Solitary Islands Marine Park is located Near Coffs Harbour, some 550 km north of Sydney.

The biggest marine protected area in New South Wales looks breathtakingly beautiful with blue-green seas swirling around jagged islands, and beaches in sandy coves.

Underwater, Solitary Islands Marine Park is one of Australia’s extremely popular scuba diving environments. Divers swim with turtles, take pictures of shoals of multi-coloured fish and move smoothly past banks of rainbow-hued coral. The park’s amazing marine diversity derives from the merging of two great ocean currents: the warmer waters of the East Australian Current, flowing from the tropical Coral Sea; and the cooler northward flow from the Tasman Sea.

Here you will have the pleasure of witnessing greater than 550 species of fish, four turtle species and a variety of marine mammals cruising around 90 species of coral and a host of active ascidians (better known as sea squirts). Each autumn and winter, humpback whales migrate north to calve in warmer waters.

In spring, they go south again to their Antarctic feeding grounds. Coffs Harbour, and the sea around Solitary Islands Marine Park, is among the finest locations in Australia for whale watching, by land and by sea.

Sydney Harbour National Park

Sydney Harbour National Park area (which includes harbour islands and surrounds) was created in 1975. Ever since its birth the area covered by the park has grown rapidly, taking in historic Fort Denison and little Goat Island in 1995. North and South Head, with their huge cliffs standing like giant sentinels at the doorway to the harbour. Sydney Harbour’s islands are Shark Island, Clark Island, Goat Island, Rodd Island and Fort Denison.

Sydney Harbour beaches incorporate Washaway Beach, Reef Beach, Obelisk Beach and Cobblers Beach. The last two, located around Middle Head, are both nude-bathing areas. Other prominent beaches include Chowder Bay (just north of Bradleys Head), Nielsen Park near Vaucluse and Balmoral Beach near Mosman.

The splendid harbour at Sydney’s heart, with its dark green sea, world famous Harbour Bridge and Opera House, is so popular that many visitors (and Sydneysiders) don’t realise that it’s also a National Park. Protected beaches within Sydney Harbour National Park include Nielsen Park, where you can lounge on the beach or unwind under a shady tree, Washaway Beach, Reef Beach and further beaches stretching north of Dobroyd Head not far from Manly.

Dolphins are recurrent visitors to the park and whales drop in too, delighting both city’s inhabitants and visitors alike. Harbour surroundings include heathlands, woodlands and eucalypt forests, with walkways between for easy exploration.

Merely an hour drive north of Sydney is the perfect destination for an extraordinary range of holiday and visitor attractions. Here you can enjoy Sunny, golden beaches, visit wildlife and nature reserves, the internationally famous reptile park and wineries, play golf just watch or engage yourself in various other sporting and recreation activates. You cal also visit secluded holiday nature reserves, spend your time leisurely at a beach resort or visiting villages. You can take part in a unique pelican feeding, and view pristine beaches from seaside clifftop lookouts. Explore vast recreational reserves and waterways and enjoy an enormous range of watersports.

Blacktown

Blacktown is the largest suburb or township in New South Wales. This town is home to a thriving multi-cultural and diverse community with a strong Australian heritage. The population is a mix of people from over 50 countries and they speaking 63 languages. Most of Greater Sydney is easily accessible from this bustling hub, which boasts popular attractions adjacent to international standard shopping centres, conference and convention facilities, car-racing venue, Wildlife Park and nature reserves and International Ice-skating Arena.

Oberon

This is the highest town in the Blue Mountains region. Internationally renowned Jenolan caves and Kanangra Boyd National Park are the key attractions in this area. Oberon is the perfect hub for exploring a multitude of unique attractions in surrounding towns & villages. The most stunning scenery in rural NSW merges gracefully into a region dotted with popular heritage villages, art and craft markets, secluded holiday and weekend retreats and of course the annual Daffodil Festival. Enjoy a wonderful summer with a spot of snow in winter.

Hawkesbury

National Parks, spectacular scenery, pristine waterways, secluded natural reserves and one of Australia’s most magnificent rivers with a vast array of water sports and recreational activities, make this region an extremely popular destination amongst those who crave for a invigorating or relaxing year-round getaway. A fascinating holiday location with old-world charm, bustling with dozens of museums and heritage locations, art and craft exhibits and galleries, horse-riding, and houseboats.

Manly

Manly is popularly known worldwide for it’s sunny beaches, waterways, heritage walks and nature reserves. Abode of the annual International Manly Jazz Festival, the Manly Food and Wine Festival, and a stunning array of Art Galleries, Museums, regular Art & Craft exhibits, and international sporting events. Manly is as equally tempting for family holidays, as it is for discerning businesses demanding international standard convention and conference facilities and professional retreats.

Penrith

Penrith is situated west of Sydney on the banks of the Nepean River at the foothills of the majestic Blue Mountains. A magnet for those who love watersports is also the home of the International Regatta Centre; here you can learn whitewater rafting. In Penrith there is a fascinating and diverse range of cultural and heritage museums, galleries and markets. Breathtaking wilderness areas adjoining several national parks surround the city. You will find a diverse range of theatre, music and dance performances to enjoy in the cities strong performing arts culture.

Albury Wodonga

A perfect destination for Conventions, featuring a professional convention bureau developed to ensure the success of your next business meeting. This only one of its kind area is built on the crossroads of one of Australia’s largest inland river systems and the countries busiest highway. In the heart of the country there’s nothing provincial about the shopping here. Built on themes of heritage and culture, nature and environment, food and wine, golf and sport, the annual calendar is packed with entertainment and activities.

Sydney Hills

Sydney Hills, Australia’s bible belt also is the home of the Orange Blossom Festival, This flourishing and rapidly developing region in Sydney’s North West has become a hub of entertainment, sport, recreational, conference and family attractions. Featuring natural bush and waterways amongst a bustling suburban metropolis, the Hills has an abundance of picnic spots and lookouts, gardens, nurseries and bushwalking environments, river cruises and water activities, and an enormous variety of activities in this extraordinarily multi-cultural region.

NSW OutBack

Culgoa National Park

This park sprawls over 22,006 hectares and is located on the upper Cugoa Floodplain, north of Brewarrina and Bourke on the Qeensland boarder.

Cobar Regional Museum

A visit to this museum will take you on a trip back in time to the very beginning of Aboriginal history in Australia through to the European settlement of Australia.

Broken Hill Heritage Trail

This is a two-hour walking tour passing many outstanding historical buildings.

Brewarrina Aboriginal Fish Traps

Brewarrina is famous for the 40,000-year-old Aboriginal fishtraps that are located just below the falls in the Brewarrina Township on the Barwon/ Darling River. This complex network of rock weirs and pools stretches for around half a kilometre along the Barwon Riverbed as built by the Ngemba people to catch fish as they swam upstream.

The fisheries are still luring fish today as they did 40,000 years ago and the area is still an important place for Aboriginal people.

Brewarrina Aboriginal Cultural Museum

Situated at a Dreamtime site, this museum offers you the chance to understanding Aboriginal Culture first hand in the very spot where the local tribes have
gathered for thousands of years.

Afghan Mosque

The Mosque is located on the site of the former ‘Camel Camp’ where Afghan and Indian Camel drivers loaded and unloaded their camel teams, from the earliest days of Broken Hill. It was built around 1891 as a place of worship for the followers of the Prophet Mohammed (or Mahomet) and is the only surviving Mosque in Australia, which was built by early cameleers. The Mosque’s alcove points toward Mecca, prayer rugs have been left by worshippers in appreciation of the Mosque.

Central New South Wales

Abercrombie Caves

The doorway to the Abercrombie Caves is through the majestic Archway. Solid masses of marble decorate the walls of the caves highlighted by the soft natural light coming in from each end.

More than a hundred years ago gold miners built a stage for dances in one of the main galleries. Today the historic dance floor is used as a stage for underground concerts, weddings and Christmas carols.

The bushrangers cave once was the hideaway of the famous Ribbon Gang, that was led by the ill-fated Ralph Entwistle, who started life on the run after being caught swimming nude in the Macquarie River at Bathurst.

The caves are encircled by native bush on a 1400 hectare Nature Reserve. There are swimming holes in the creek as well as a public prospecting area within the camping area. At the southern end of the Abercrombie Caves Nature Reserve are the Grove Creek Falls, which plummets spectacularly some 70 metres. An all weather track; leads to the viewing platform.

Ben Chifley Dam

The dam is Bathurst’s water supply and recreation area. Visitors to the region can do power boating, water skiing and sailing. The lake is good for fishing. Cabin accommodation, barbecue and picnic facilities are available. Camping is not allowed.

North Coast NSW

Corindi Beach

Corindi Beach is a perfect area for surfing, swimming and snorkelling enthusiasts. There are also delightful little rock pools for the little ones to have a puddle. The Yarrawarra Aboriginal Corporation operates an arts centre, bush tucker walk and community meeting facility. For the walking enthusiasts, Yuraygir National Park has an abundance of coastal tracks and beach walks north 8kms to Red Rock River and 14kms to Station Creek. A beautiful boardwalk extends through the rainforest to the northern end of Corindi Beach and is accessible from the beach or the sports oval.

Bulahdelah Mountain Park

The park is an ideal place for daytime picnics also has a network of scenic walking trails.

Bruxner Park Flora Reserve

From up here you can have spectacular coastal views and an overall view of the city of Coffs Harbour.  

Booti Booti National Park

Covering an area of 1,567 hectares the Booti Booti National Park is located 140 km north of Newcastle and 10km south of Forster.

Bongil Bongil National Park

Pristine beaches, littoral rainforest and fascinating estuaries offer a perfect
setting for family activities. Canoeing is the best way to explore Bonville
and Pine Creeks, from the Sawtell boat ramp. You can enjoy an
easy walk from Tuckers Rocks. Nearby Sawtell offers lodging and camping
in a bush setting, at Sawtell Reserve.

Loads of condoms have been distributed for free as a response to the increasing numbers of Sydney backpackers seeking diagnosis and treatment for new infections, especially Chlamydia.

In keeping with recent research, backpackers were more likely to report drinking alcohol in excessive amounts and then not using condoms while having sex, thereby increasing the risk of them contracting an STI.

The rising number of heterosexual backpackers with new sexually transmitted infections has now become a major concern to them health officials in Sydney. According to them from amongst those who suffer from an STI some also have HIV infections that they have acquired in other countries on the way to Australia.

The basic safe sex messages sent by them has fallen on deaf ears, have caused some alarm with the authorities.

It is very important that backpackers should always carry condoms with them because research shows, countries that are popular with backpackers, have higher rates of HIV and STIs than Australia.

Sydney health authorities and councils have now teamed up with the NSW Backpackers Operators Association to promote better sexual health practices among young international travellers.

This is why, making an effort to stop STIs from spreading some more, them folks at the Sydney health authorities and councils have taken the necessary steps to distributing free condoms for backpackers, at places where backpackers are accommodated.

Through strategically placed advertisements in Sydney backpacker magazines, the authorities are looking to educate the young international travellers on the negative effects of getting contaminated with the incurable disease.     

Figures presented at the Australasian sexual health congress in September showed number of people who have contaminated chlamydia are rising rapidly in major cities, and that five per cent of people under 25 are now believed to have the disease.

Games:

The majority of Sydney residents seem to be fascinated with chess. This looks obvious because If you go for a stroll in downtown Sydney, especially around the Hyde Park area, you would see many people playing chess on normal size chess boards that are placed on park benches or on the ground, while some have chosen to play their game on the giant sized Chess board that is painted on concrete.

During lunchtime, there is a sudden population surge in this area because many folks gather here to play a game of chess with a colleague, while enjoying their lunch in one of the many trendy cafés that are located in the area. If you are lover of the game, then get your self to Hyde Park, may be you too can join in since it seems anyone can join in.

Drinks and Food

As a foreigner, when talking of Aussie cuisine, to me it seems Aussie pies are the best-known examples. These are hand-held savoury pastries that are being made using different types of meat, carrots, English peas, potatoes, and possibly other vegetables. Aussie pies are similar to American potpie but can be hand held. Mind the filling, as it could be hot

Dress

It seems many Australian men prefer wearing white shirts and black suites for work. It is somewhat true with women as well, but unlike men they often wear red shoes or pink ribbon with their black attire. However, you will also see plenty of them renegades that are dressed in what they think as comfortable casual cloths.

Tipping

Tipping is not practiced, very rarely if ever, would be much appreciated if you give a tip, but that will only make it look obvious that you are a visitor to the city. May be you can save the change to pay for the ever increasingly expensive hotels or to have another pint of beer.

History

Captain Cook discovered the Sydney area in 1788. He landed in Botany Bay at a spot called la perouse, and proclaimed Australia as a British colony. However, it was the Dutch who discovered the area 200 years before them Brits did, but they were too slow to stake their claim! There is a statue of Captain Cook in Hyde Park. You can visit Botany Bay if you want to see some early convict history.

The historical Fort Dennison (an island), where they jailed the convicts is now a restaurant. They kept them convicts here as prisoners because the shark infested waters around it made it impossible for them convicts to getaway by swimming ashore. 

Australia Day, Sydney

On the 26^th of January each year Australians celebrate Australia day. On this day in 1788, Captain Arthur Phillip became Governor of the Colony of New South Wales. A multitude of events are held all over Sydney on the 26 January, celebrating the anniversary of the beginning of British settlement. If you want to learn more about the Australia day visit the Australia day website at www.australiaday.gov.au

ANZAC Day

On ANZAC Day Australians commemorate all them brave Australian soldiers who fought for Australia in the two world wars, and those who are fighting to protect the nation even today. The beautiful monument built on their behalf is in Hyde Park, you can pay respect any time of the year, but it will be in April that the monument will see most of its offerings of remembrance.

This is a railway service operating from 5AM till midnight 7 days a week, links the domestic and international terminals to all city circle railway stations. For additional information you can call 02 8337 8412 or visit the website www.airportlink.com.au.

Buses

Sydney Busses operates in the entire city. The main bus terminals are at Circular Quay, Wynyard, Town Hall and Central Station. You can find more information about Sydney Buses from:

• Bus kiosks located at Circular Quay, Wynyard Station and Queen Victoria Building (QVB) & Railway Square (Central Station).

• Calling 131 500 or www.131500.info

• www.sydneybuses.info

Trains

Metropolitan services

You can use the CityRail leisure and tourist tickets to get you where you want to go. For travelling around the city centre you can take the City Circle Line (Circular Quay, Wynyard, Town Hall, Central, Museum and St James Stations). There is a station also at Martin Place. Ticket vending machines are open 24 hours. Information about CityRail services is available from:

• Train kiosks at circular Quay and Central Stations

• Sydney Transport Infoline: www.131500.info Tel: 131 500    

• City Rail website: www.cityrail.info.

Interstate and Intrastate Services

The main junction for interstate and intrastate rail services is the Central Railway Station. You can find additional information about interstate and intrastate train services from:

• Train kiosks at Central Station

• Sydney Transport Infoline: www.131500.info Tel: 131 500

• Countrylink Infoline: www.countrylink.info Tel: 132 232.

Ferries

Taking a ferry to and from the city will give you a delightful experience. You can catch one at the Sydney Harbour. For further information you check call or visit:

• Ferry kiosks at Circular Quay and Manly

• Sydney Transport Infoline: www.131500.info Tel: 131 500

• Sydney Ferries website: www.sydneyferries.info.

Light Rail

Sydney’s latest transport system is the Monorail. You can ride the Monorail on any day or hour of the week.

You can even take a Tram ride from historic Central Station through vibrant Chinatown and Darling Harbour to the Star City Casino, the Sydney Fish Markets and Wentworth Park.

Call Metro Light Rail on 02 9285 5600 or visit www.metrolightrail.com.au if you need to know any more information.

Monorail

The monorail has a wonderful city loop with eight stops throughout the CBD. There is a monorail departing every 3-5 minutes and takes approximately 15 minutes to finish the circuit. Single trips or day passes can be bought at every station. Dial 02 8584 5288 or visit www.metromonorail.com.au for additional information.

Taxis

There is an abundance of taxis in Sydney, you can either hail one that is passing you by on the street or get one at ranks at Circular Quay, Wynyard Station, or at the Town Hall Station. You can ask your hotel concierge if you need a taxi to pick you at the hotel.

Sydney & Bondi Explorer (Tourist buses)

If you are looking to having most comprehensive hop-on hop-off sightseeing tours available, then you can check that out with the 27 stop ‘red’ Sydney Explorer and 19 stop ‘blue’ Bondi Explorer. They are the only timetabled services, which offer a minimum 20-minute service frequency and include travel on the regular Sydney Buses network (blue travel zone).

You can purchase one day or two day tickets from both Sydney and Bondi Explorer. You can even buy your ticket on board the bus.

For additional information dial 131 500 or visit www.sydneyexplorer.info

City Hopper (Train)

You can ride the City Hopper train and enjoy unlimited all day rail travel in the area bounded by Kings Cross, North Sydney and Redfern.

Visit www.cityrail.info for additional information.

SydneyPass (Tourist ticket)

The SydneyPass is available for 3, 5, and 7 days. With this you can enjoy unlimited travel on the Sydney and Bondi Explorer buses, all CityRail trains within a bounded area, all Sydney Buses and all Sydney Ferries, and return AirportLink train transfers. Your ‘SydneyPass’ tourist ticker also provides you with discounts into Sydney’s major attractions. You can purchase a SydneyPass ticket onboard the Explorer buses as well as from tourist outlets, travel agents and most CityRail Stations.

Visit www.sydneypass.info or phone 131 500 if you need any more information.

Day Tripper Ticket

If you are looking for ‘all in a day’ ticket then the Day Tripper ticket is for you. This ticket provides you with access to all three modes of Government transport in Sydney.  You can utilise your ticket to travel in all regular Sydney Buses, Sydney Ferries and CityRail Suburban Services within a bounded area.

A search for Sydney backpacker accommodation on any search engine will reveal a plethora of Sydney backpacker accommodation providers claiming they offer the cheapest accommodation in Sydney. However, to get the best deal in town you first need to do some serious research of your own.

After finding as many cheap accommodation providers in Sydney as you think is enough, you then need to compare the rates and facilities displayed by different, ‘providers of cheapest accommodation in Sydney’. Doing this will make it possible for you to find out the actual cheapest accommodation provider in Sydney as well as the Sydney budget accommodation provider offering the best value for your money. 

Your research will make you realize that some budget accommodation providers in Sydney may have Slightly higher rates than the cheapest accommodation providers, but when looking at the facilities they have and the kind of service they promise to their clients for the rates quoted, you can easily judge for your self as to whom should you choose between the two, whether it is the one having the cheapest backpacker accommodation rates in town or the one who is offering the best value for money budget accommodation deal in town.

Kings cross hostels, are often chosen by Sydney cheap accommodation seeking backpackers, because staying in a conveniently situated Kings cross hostel will help them save money otherwise spent on transportation. If you need to know more about Kings cross hostels, you can easily do so on the Internet